The Book of the Prophet Ezekiel

Chapter 17

Ezekiel shows in a parable how Israel, while subject to Babylon, wrongfully sought help from Egypt—Yet the Lord will bring forth in the last days a goodly tree from the cedars of Lebanon.

1 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

2 Son of man, put forth a riddle, and speak a parable unto the house of Israel;

3 And say, Thus saith the Lord God; A great aeagle with great wings, longwinged, full of feathers, which had divers colours, came unto Lebanon, and took the highest branch of the cedar:

4 He cropped off the top of his young twigs, and acarried it into a land of btraffick; he set it in a city of merchants.

5 He took also of the seed of the land, and aplanted it in a fruitful field; he placed it by great waters, and set it as a willow tree.

6 And it grew, and became a spreading avine of low stature, whose branches turned toward him, and the roots thereof were under him: so it became a vine, and brought forth branches, and shot forth sprigs.

7 There was also another great eagle with great wings and many feathers: and, behold, this vine did bend her roots toward him, and shot forth her branches toward him, that he might water it by the furrows of her plantation.

8 It was planted in a agood soil by great waters, that it might bring forth branches, and that it might bear fruit, that it might be a goodly vine.

9 Say thou, Thus saith the Lord God; Shall it prosper? shall he not pull up the roots thereof, and cut off the fruit thereof, that it wither? it shall wither in all the leaves of her spring, even without great power or many people to pluck it up by the roots thereof.

10 Yea, behold, being planted, shall it prosper? shall it not utterly wither, when the aeastbwind toucheth it? it shall wither in the furrows where it grew.

11 ¶ Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

12 Say now to the arebellious house, Know ye not what these things mean? tell them, Behold, the bking of Babylon is come to Jerusalem, and hath taken the king thereof, and the princes thereof, and led them with him to Babylon;

13 And hath taken of the king’s aseed, and made a covenant with him, and hath taken an boath of him: he hath also taken the cmighty of the land:

14 That the kingdom might be base, that it might not lift itself up, but that by keeping of his covenant it might stand.

15 But he arebelled against him in sending his ambassadors into Egypt, that they might give him horses and much people. Shall he prosper? shall he escape that doeth such things? or shall he break the covenant, and be delivered?

16 As I live, saith the Lord God, surely in the place where the king dwelleth that made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant he brake, even with him in the midst of aBabylon he shall die.

18 Seeing he despised the oath by breaking the covenant, when, lo, he had given his hand, and hath done all these things, he shall not escape.

19 Therefore thus saith the Lord God; As I live, surely mine oath that he hath despised, and my covenant that he hath broken, even it will I recompense upon his own head.

20 And I will spread my anet upon him, and he shall be btaken in my snare, and I will bring him to cBabylon, and will dplead with him there for his trespass that he hath trespassed against me.

21 And all his fugitives with all his abands shall fall by the sword, and they that remain shall be bscattered toward all winds: and ye shall know that I the Lord have spoken it.

22 ¶ Thus saith the Lord God; I will also take of the highest abranch of the high cedar, and will set it; I will crop off from the top of his young btwigs a tender one, and will cplantit upon an high mountain and eminent:

23 In the mountain of the height of Israel will I plant it: and it shall bring forth boughs, and bear fruit, and be a goodly cedar: and under it shall dwell all fowl of every wing; in the shadow of the branches thereof shall they dwell.

24 And all the trees of the field shall know that I the Lord have brought down the high tree, have aexalted the low tree, have dried up the green tree, and have made the dry tree to flourish: I the Lord have spoken and have bdoneit.